Bach on Nine Strings

Two violoncelli piccoli, one with four strings, the other with five, making a total of nine strings: it is as if a new instrument had been born, an organ with strings instead of pipes, in order to perform virtuoso polyphonic masterpieces with a larger, enriched tonal palette. Drawing inspiration from Gustav Leonhardt’s piano transcriptions of the suites, sonatas, and partitas, Mario Brunello lends a new sonic dimension to three of Bach’s solo pieces for unaccompanied violin and violoncello, making audible the polyphony previously restricted to just four strings. He is joined by his long-time friend Mauro Valli, who has already been heard on Arcana with his personal reinterpretation of the cello suites (Bach in Bologna A459, 2019). “I do not consider this a transcription, nor even an arrangement for other instruments. I would simply call it an apparition—something that exists, but—like certain natural phenomena, such as a rainbow—only becomes visible under specific conditions.” (Mario Brunello)